Pick Me
by musicninja77
Summary: With a crumbling company and no more options, Misaki must go to the extremes to save her company. Along the way, she encounters a few interesting individuals who turn her life for the better...or worse.
1. Chapter 1

Hello everyone! Every end is simply a new beginning and here I am from writing the story Hypnotized. This story is something that I had in mind a year ago, but school and laziness kind of stymied any progress to be made. This story is going to be full of plot twists because I absolutely love them. I hope you enjoy this first chapter and don't forget to review! (P.s. sorry for the extremely short chapter!)

Disclaimer: I don't own Maid Sama or the characters

 **~Chapter One~**

"Miss Ayuzawa, the President of the company would like to see you."

Misaki glanced up from the page of statistics she was analyzing and nodded. She was glad to finally take a break from the tedious work at hand. Becoming the heir of a major corporation was no small job, especially for a woman of her time; she had much to prove in the business world full of men.

Getting up out of her chair, Misaki followed the petite secretary to where her grandfather waited for her presence. Stepping into the room, Misaki could already sense the feelings of guilt and desperation.

"Hello, Misaki. Has your day been well?", Grandfather asked.

"Yes, my day has been well. Just full of work and numbers."

"I need to discuss a serious matter with you and no questions until the end."

Misaki nodded in response, confused about what would be discussed.

"As you may have heard the rumors circulating, the company isn't doing well. We weren't able to get new investors and all our money is disappearing faster than it can be made. At this rate, the company may not last until I die."

Misaki's eyes widened in response. She had heard about the rumors, but she thought they were simply just rumors. Misaki looked down at her hands while her grandfather continued.

"This company has been a prized possession of the Ayuzawa's and I'm ashamed at myself for leading to its downfall. I really have tried everything I can to save it, but nothing is working." Grandfather sighed and continued. "Misaki, I need you to be extra open minded to what I'm about to suggest."

Misaki nodded and said, "I'm willing to do anything I can to save the company."

"I need you to win over the heir of the Walker Corps, Usui Takumi."

Misaki's head shot up so fast that it startled her grandfather. "There's got to be some other way to save the company. I could simply go over there and ask them if they wanted to partner with us. One of my assets is the element of persuasion", Misaki pleaded.

Grandfather sighed for the second time. "With our downfall coming upon us quickly, a negotiation may take months to settle and we don't have that time. I just need you to win him over. Not for this to sound weird, but I'm sure you can do that fairly quickly."

"Grandfather, this has got to be the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard! You're willing to sacrifice me to some heartless man for the sake of your company?" Misaki burst out laughing. "This has got to be some kind of sick joke, right?"

"Misaki, focus! This will soon be your company. Please, I know it sounds strange, but it has to be done. I want you to at least try", Grandfather said.

Misaki looked down at her hands and contemplated the situation. She knew how important this company was to her grandfather and she desperately wanted to help. What her grandfather was asking of her was a bit much, though. Twiddling her thumbs, she felt the weight of the company on her shoulders as she imagined what would happen if the company were to shut down. After a few more minutes of pondering, she nodded her head in agreement.

"You will meet him tomorrow at 11:30 in the café down the street. Please don't let the company down."


	2. Chapter 2

Hi guys! I'm back with another chapter of Pick Me! College really does take up lots of time up! Anyways, I think you guys will really like this chapter! Enjoy and don't forget to review, favorite, and follow! P.s. I LOVE reviews!

"This is for the sake of the business. This is for the sake of the business…", Misaki chanted as she paced around her room. Misaki pondered about how the business could have taken this big of a tumble that her grandfather had to resort to such measures in order to save it. She wondered how the business, her business, could have fallen right under her nose.

Feeling exasperated, Misaki laid down on her bed and stared at the ceiling. Taking a deep breath, she felt guilt slowly enter her body until all of her was engulfed in the overwhelming feeling. Perhaps this was karma biting her back for not being more vigilant over her company. Whatever it was, Misaki was now left to deal with the repercussions of her mistake.

'Men', she scoffed, balling her fists. Her deep loathing for the opposite sex wasn't always apparent. When she was little, her father loved her unconditionally. Hinata, her best friend, never left her side and she may have even developed a tiny, miniscule crush on him. It was life that taught her how weak and unreliable men can be. Somehow, they all just end up leaving. Her once heroic and trustworthy father ran away due to the debt he accumulated, leaving the family broken and in shambles. Misaki's mother took this the hardest as she became numb to everything and worked herself to death. With no parental supervision, Misaki and Suzuna stayed with Hinata and his family. Suddenly, Hinata's parents were involved in a horrible accident that took away the precious little boy's parents, leaving all three of them scarred and alone. Hinata had to leave Misaki to live with his grandparents as Misaki and Suzuna were taken in by their grandparents.

When Misaki was first taken in by her grandparents, she hated her grandfather. She hated him not only because he was a male, but because he had so much wealth that she didn't understand why he couldn't have helped her and her family. Grandfather then proceeded to explain that Misaki's and Suzuna's father demanded that Grandfather did not interfere with his personal life. Grandfather was honestly very surprised to hear that his very own son ran away, leaving his family in such a horrible condition. From that day on, Grandfather vowed to be the father that Misaki and Suzuna never had because he felt responsible for not teaching his son how to be a decent man. Misaki and Suzuna eventually came around to accepting Grandfather.

Misaki closed her eyes and drifted off in a deep slumber, knowing that she must do what she had to do…

*knock knock*

"Misaki, it's time for you to get up."

*knock knock*

"Come in", Misaki said, drowsily. She rubbed her eyes and stretched still lying down. The door opened, revealing a small dark purple-haired maid.

"Misaki, you must get up otherwise you'll be late for your date!"

Misaki asked "Satsuki, can't I just sleep for five more minutes?", earning a chuckle from Satsuki, Misaki's personal maid.

"I already left you sleep for five more minutes. Now you must really get up, otherwise your grandfather will be disappointed in you."

Misaki groaned and sat up. She stretched, yawned, and climbed out of bed to go to the bathroom.

"You're clothes are picked out and on the bed", Satsuki said and left the room.

Misaki brushed her teeth and went to get changed. When she saw the clothes Satsuki had laid out, she grimaced. Knowing Satsuki, of course she would pick out something involving a short skirt. Sighing, Misaki quickly put on the garments and looked at herself in the mirror. 'This is for the company, right?', Misaki thought to herself. She noticed how her black, v-neck short-sleeved shirt dipped down a little too low for her comfort. Misaki wondered why Satsuki couldn't have just settled with a simple scoop neck shirt. Looking at what adorned her lower half, Misaki didn't even want to get started on the denim skirt. Looking past her skirt, at least Satsuki was reasonable enough to let her wear sneakers with the outfit. Sighing for the second time, Misaki tugged down her skirt, grabbed her black leather jacket (faux-fur, of course), and proceeded to go downstairs for breakfast.

"Misaki, lighten up", Satsuki said, rubbing her back. "You'll get premature wrinkles if you keep frowning." When she didn't receive any response, Satsuki tried reassuring Misaki. "This date can't be that bad. You know that he is a very handsome man. He is notorious for being a womanizer, but he may just be dealing with some issues of his own. Why don't you give him a chance?"

"I guess you're right", Misaki said, taking a bite of her toast.

Just then, Suzuna entered the dining room. "Hey sis, hurry up and eat so I can do your makeup and hair."

"Suzuna, why am I the only one receiving this torture?", Misaki asked.

"Because I didn't want to do it", Suzuna bluntly replied.

When Grandfather brought up the issue of the inheritance of the company to Suzuna, she blatantly said that she had no interest in such ordeals. Grandfather persisted and tried persuading Suzuna, but the more he pestered her about it, the more annoyed she got. One day, Suzuna snapped and declined with the utmost annoyance. Everyone in the house shivered in fear, even Grandfather. From then on, he decided to respect her decision and ask Misaki, who he thought would automatically decline. To his surprise, she said, "yes" and he has been training her ever since.

Misaki smiled, remembering that experience. She quickly finished up her toast and followed Suzuna to the living room, where Suzuna began dolling Misaki up.

"A word of advice sis. Takumi is really difficult to get the attention of. So what you need to do is pretend to drop something and then bend down low to get it."

"Suzuna, what kind of advice is that?", Misaki asked in disbelief. Where is her innocent sister?

Suzuna shrugged and said, "I dunno. I saw it in a movie. It might be helpful."

Misaki facepalmed. "Suzuna, were you watching Legally Blonde again? Those types of movies are fiction and not to be applied to real life situations!"

"It might work if you try it. Anyways, you're good to go. Good luck, sis. If it doesn't work out, give him my number. I don't want to be CEO, but that doesn't mean I don't like CEOs", Suzuna said, going back to her room.

Misaki looked at her sister incredulously as she ascended up the stairs. 'I really need to ban her from watching those movies', Misaki thought to herself.

"Miss, your car is ready."

"Thank you", Misaki said, as she headed outside and into the car. She could already tell that today was going to be a long day.

Getting out of the car, Misaki entered the dainty little restaurant. She could smell the overly priced perfume and money in the air and mentally grimaced. Scanning the restaurant, she caught sight of the spiky, blonde-haired male sitting alone at a table in the corner. 'Must be him', Misaki thought, as she reluctantly walked over to the table.

"Uh.. Hi", Misaki said, trying to plaster on her best fake smile.

The man got out of his seat and offered his hand for a handshake. "Hello there. Ayuzawa Misaki, right?"

Misaki shook the man's hand. "Yeah."

The man pulled out her chair and motioned for her to sit. "Takumi Walker. Nice to meet you." When she sat in the chair, Takumi pushed the chair in for her. "You don't seem so pleased to see me."

Misaki was taken by surprise and her cheeks turned red from embarrassment. "W-why do you say that?"

Takumi chuckled at her reaction. "All the women I have met would have been all over me by now, but you… You're trying your best to put on a fake smile."

Misaki stared back, shocked. 'How did he know?', Misaki thought.

"I know because you're like an open book."

Misaki's cheeks changed into a bright, tomato-red color. 'He reads minds too?'

The waiter came in just in time to spare Misaki further embarrassment. After ordering, the two sat in silence. Misaki felt emerald-green eyes burning holes into her soul. She finally looked up and said, "what?"

Takumi chuckled again and said, "I just thought of the perfect nickname for you. Misa-chan! How cute~"

Misaki's cheeks were set aflame again. "B-baka! What are you even saying? That's not my name!"

"Hey, Misa-chan. Your shirt is kinda low. I can see you wearing-" was all Takumi could say before Misaki hit him on the head.

"Have you no consideration for me and the people around us, you stupid perverted-space alien?!"

Takumi laughed. "I'm kind of into that name. Maybe I'll change that to my official name."

At that point, Misaki gave up and left the restaurant in a hurry to escape him.

Takumi chuckled, watching her leave

"Seems like you got it bad", a man said, coming behind Takumi.

"She's interesting. I'm intrigued", Takumi said, smiling. "I'm taking her back."

"Sorry, no can do. You gave her up to me already. A deal is a deal."

The blonde-haired, golden-eyed man swiftly left the restaurant, leaving a very frustrated Takumi behind.


End file.
